REAL GO GETTER

Around The Sound recently spoke to singer/songwriter, Tobias Wonderdog, about what’s going on in his world, his forthcoming EP Land of Paper Chimneys and his upcoming single, ‘The Sun’. It’s pretty obvious to us that Tobias is a real go getter and is hungry to spread his truth and passion with the world.

I never cared about fitting in and all I wanted to do was listen to music and collect Midnight Oil T-shirts.

We asked Tobias how things have been going for him lately and what has been keeping him busy.

“I’ve been busy of late preparing for The Sun release and working on a Spotify playlist that primarily features Lincoln Mackinnon and The Wrecking Train, Dan Howls, The Little Lord Street Band and Tobias Wonderdog. I’m always corresponding with partners in LA and Europe whilst trying to keep time for health and fitness. I do coaching sessions with emerging artists also so my schedule is pretty full on.”

We were intrigued about the name and story behind his name ‘Tobias Wonderdog’ and pressed him on where the name came from and why he was inspired by a fox terrier Jack Russell known as Toby:

“I was born into a family with a long history of hunting and fishing. So I was regularly away on weekends and holidays as a kid. I remember studying an animal encyclopedia looking at dogs and I fell in love with the miniature fox terrier. It was only a few weeks later when a sign appeared in the local shop stating free to good home miniature fox terrier. Toby was a predator always on the prowl and became legend in our town. He roamed freely and everyone came to know him as the wonderdog.

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“He survived so many near-death experiences it was incredible. My mother ran him over driving home once and he managed to run all the way to my school and locate my classroom to tell me. He traveled all over the nation with my father in his truck and everywhere they went people would come running out with treats and praises for the wonderdog. His immense energy and charm literally made him famous. He was always hurting himself but still managed to live for 24 years. In many ways, I never cared about fitting in and all I wanted to do was listen to music and collect Midnight Oil T-shirts.

“So, Toby and the outdoors was everything to me, when most kids were playing G.I Joe or having sleepovers, I was wandering up high in the mountains with Toby and a shotgun or fishing rod over my shoulder. When he died it was a lifetime of memories and adventures that stayed with me and inspired me to live life to the fullest.”

Time to get down to business, we then asked Tobias about his upcoming single and video ‘The Sun’, which was released on 12 July.

“The Sun I feel is a desperate call to god in many ways. It provokes thoughts about re-incarnation and feeling helpless in a world being destroyed by sociopaths in power. It points at the global anxiety we all feel now and the excessive worry we have trying to survive. People see poor mental health as a general health issue. I see it as a bi-product of austerity and bad government. I guess it touches on my own personal struggles in trying to stay positive but also feels like I’m speaking for so many more. The animation clip coming soon was created to bring that dreamy element, taking the audience on a journey in both elements of audio and visual.”

We wanted to know what his fans can expect from his upcoming EP ‘Land of Paper Chimneys’ and wanted to know a little bit more about the writing and recording process along the way:

“There’s not one song that sounds the same on the EP in my opinion. To be honest it took way too long to produce but it feels like a pretty powerful display as to what’s on offer in the future. I was fortunate to work with Mark Kennedy in co-producing and percussion. Mark is a global hero in the music world. Having someone who has worked on over one hundred number one records by your side certainly helps. The guys in the band didn’t get a lot of time to prepare for this record but they are so professional I think we got away with it. I think the very best of my songwriting is at the ready for an album. That’s the next step for us while this current release gets rolled out. Our listeners can never get too settled as to what to expect. I hate rules.”

Inspired and ready to release this passionate effort, Tobias Wonderdog is quite clearly a man on a mission. Keep an eye out for his upcoming releases of ‘Land Of Paper Chimneys’ and his single ‘The Sun’ unleashing on the world soon!